A Greek-flagged supertanker called the Arosa is currently cutting across the Pacific with 616,000 barrels of American emergency oil in its belly. Destination: Bataan, Philippines. Expected arrival: early July.
It’s the first time US Strategic Petroleum Reserve crude has shipped to Asia since November 2022.
What’s actually on the ship
The cargo is a mix of sour crude pulled from the Bryan Mound SPR site in Texas, along with roughly 700,000 barrels of US sour Thunder Horse grade. Shell chartered the Very Large Crude Carrier for the journey.
This shipment is a piece of a far larger puzzle. The US has been releasing 172 million barrels from the SPR starting in March 2026, a response to supply disruptions tied to ongoing conflicts involving Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
